Present day subscriber line circuits (SLICs) customarily employ some form of low power, standby mode of operation to provide a prescribed voltage to the subscriber line when the subscriber's telephone is in its on-hook condition, and to provide current to the phone when the subscriber takes the phone off-hook, so that current-sensing circuitry can detect the flow of loop current and thereby the off-hook condition of the phone. The loop and phone resistance is typically on the order of 200 ohms, and the supplied voltage may be on the order of −42V to −56V. This implies the need for current-limiting, in order to prevent damage to the SLIC. In the past this has been accomplished by a set of switching circuit components, in the form of relatively large (high current demand rated) transistors and associated resistors dedicated for the purpose, namely, circuitry that is separate and distinct from that of the speech amplifier. These speech circuit add-on components undesirably increase the complexity and cost of the SLIC.